Graham Amery 1957-2024. Pictured in a field of clover at Grenfell in 2022.
Raised by devout Christian parents in Kyabram, Graham Leslie Amery was a gentle soul, but this quirky and adventurous farmer had an uncanny ability on dirt bikes.
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A skilled rider, he achieved Victoria-wide fame for winning successive agricultural riding competitions at the Royal Melbourne Show much to the irritation of officials who would have liked to see the prize (a new Honda motorcycle) shared around the state.
One measure of his life might be that his memorial service was attended by more than 500 people, gathered in the home property’s hay shed on April 20, but possibly of more significance to Graham was the tributes paid to him by family and friends.
His sons and daughters sung and played at the service.
Graham died in a road accident on March 25, not far from his Grenfell property, where he and wife Marian, have lived for 19 years.
Graham was the second son of Merv and Pat Amery, born on September 19, 1957. His family included Geoff, Colin, Rhonda and Laurel.
Graham attended school at Lancaster, Tongala and Kyabram High, but Graham didn’t like school much and left after year nine.
He joined brother Geoff working on the family dairy farm, helping their dad to milk the 120 to 150 cows. The boys learnt to work hard, getting up early to milk, irrigate, shift electric fences, feed out hay, rear calves, and cut and bale hay.
During the cannery season both boys supplemented their income with work at the Kyabram Cannery.
A curious individual, Graham learnt mechanics by trial and error and his methods sometimes landed him in trouble.
Numerous tributes were made at Graham Amery's funeral.
One day wanting to know what was inside a .22 bullet, so Graham put it in the vice and tried to pry it open using pliers. Getting frustrated because he couldn't prise it open he hit it hard until the bullet fired and just grazed his ankle.
Graham’s quest for adventure and enterprise in his early days was partly satisfied by a trip to Queensland with his mates Dale Gillie and Graeme King who found work on a cane farm in Mackay.
During that time he had an accident while riding a motorbike, leaving him with a broken leg; an injury which plagued him for years.
Graham cut his teeth in farm management on a leased dairy farm at Koyuga.
Graham was born into a musical family, but also had a natural ear for music, allowing him to play by ear without the need for sheet music.
He mastered the piano and easily picked up the guitar and banjo, a talent expressed in church services and outreaches.
Graham and Marian Colliver met in 1980 and got married in December the same year in Kyabram.
The couple purchased a 108 acre dairy farm at Tongala.
Graham ran Junior Youth Group at Kyabram’s Living Waters church.
Graham was always an outstanding motorbike rider and competed in the Royal Melbourne Show Honda Motorcycle Competition, winning a new Honda motorbike in 1980, 1982, 1984, and 1986.
Graham kept the dairy farm in new motorbikes every two years up until he was banned from competing.
On one occasion, Graham spontaneously decided to do a victory lap at the show arena, and much to the distress of show officials and delight of the crowd, who had mistaken him for stunt rider, Dale Buggins, performed a motorcycle mono for one lap.
While farming at Tongala, Jarrod, Lauren and Elise were born.
Although he loved farming, he grew tired of the demands of milking cows, and he sold the cows in 1989 and kept the beef cattle and soon after the couple purchased a Nathalia irrigation property called ‘Karinga’ where they produced hay and wool and raised sheep and beef.
By this time Graham had become involved in volunteering to work with the Kyabram drug rehabilitation program, Teen Challenge.
Meanwhile, he had also travelled to Thailand, India and Sri Lanka with Pastor David Storer, Anna Storer and Andrea Moore helping those in need and establishing a connection with Mercy International Orphanage.
While living at Nathalia more children were born; Aaron, followed by Charlotte, and Kate.
In 1996, Graham bought his first harvester and began cropping on their farm plus on an extra block at Picola West, called ‘Clydebank’.
In 2004 Graham and Marian sold Karinga and in 2006 bought a 2000 acre property in Grenfell, NSW, called ‘Birangan’.
Graham continued his Christian service in his new home in Grenfell when he moved there 18 years ago and the couple ran Young Adults in Grenfell for five years.
He intentionally went out of his way to help his children in their different ventures and loved going to see his grandchildren in any school events he could.
Going for a wild motorbike ride with Pa was something all grandchildren got to experience.
At the beginning of last year Aaron and Lauren took up bicycle riding on the farm at Birangan and Graham decided it was time he worked on his fitness levels.
Since then he has been disciplined and continued to ride his bike each week.
Last year Graham and Marian bought a 140 acre retirement property, Lochlona, 7km from Forbes, and in the week before his fatal accident he was reflecting on how nice it would be to settle out there with the bird life and tranquil setting.
Hundreds attended the open air memorial service at Grenfell for Graham Amery.
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